For my triumphant return to outdoor Refine Method, I wore a new pair of shoes: the limited edition New Balance Team Garmin-Sharp Argyle 890v3 Performance Running Shoe. The shoes looked great and I received a number of compliments during the short time I had them on.
It’s a bonus that they performed very well too.
New Balance Team Garmin-Sharp 890v Argyle Performance Running Shoe
And by bonus I mean the entire reason I tried them out. I needed to see how the shoes performed and I decided that I’d start with short, fast distances first. As a lightweight shoe, the 890v3s are very different than the thicker shoes I usually wear to run.
At the same time, I’ve been wanting to dabble in lightweight running shoes for shorter, faster distances and had no idea how to decide which to go with. When New Balance offered me the chance to try out their limited edition New Balance Team Garmin-Sharp 890v3 performance running shoe, of course I said yes. And then they asked if I wanted to give away a pair to a reader — so, we all win. Well, two of us win, and one of the two is me. Mazel tov in advance to the one of you who wins.
As an injury-prone runner who loves lightweight sneakers for cross-training but needs cushioning for longer runs, I wanted to be careful. Outdoor Refine includes about four sprints up a hill, at just over 100 meters, in addition to all the other exercises we do. This seemed perfect for trying out a lightweight shoe with more flexibility than a standard running shoe.
The shoes, despite my initial concerns that they were too big (more on that below) were incredibly comfortable. I felt light on my feet and more importantly, I felt FAST during those sprints. Despite running up a steep hill, I felt like I was running on air as I zipped past people.
I also felt completely comfortable during walking lunges, jumping jacks, deadlifts, moving ladder jump squats, fast feet in and out of the ladder and all the other Refine-y moves that are much better performed with a flexible shoe.
Edited to add: these are more supportive than the New Balance Minimus.
Pretties
I haven’t gone on a run in them yet, but I plan to later this week when I have 30-35 min with 4x100m strides on my plan. I’d love to see how I feel during a short run with a few bursts of speed.
If all goes well, I will incorporate them into more of my Richmond Marathon training runs!
About the shoes
Why are they called Team Garmin-Sharp?
New Balance has once again been named the official off-bike shoe of Team Garmin-Sharp, the American professional cycling team.
The argyle design is very pretty. Why argyle?
To commemorate the third year of partnership, New Balance has introduced the Limited Edition Team Garmin-Sharp 890v3 running shoe, featuring the bright blue hues and argyle patterns reminiscent of the team’s cycling uniform, which earned them the nickname “Argyle Armada.”
Any other interesting tie-ins to the cycling team?
The shoe also includes a custom insert, or sock liner featuring the riders.
Cool. Unless you put your own orthotics in. Then, less cool.
What size should you get?
As for sizing… this is something I struggle with because every brand runs differently on me, and I size up for running which usually means my running shoes don’t work for regular wear.
New Balance shoes seem to run a little large on me and I was torn between two sizes. I ended up asking for the larger size, figuring my orthotics (should I choose to have extra support with these) would fit into the larger size better.
Check out the New Balance Team Garmin-Sharp 890v3 performance running shoes – if you like what you see, you can enter to win your own pair thanks to New Balance! You can get up to two entries.
New Balance Team Garmin-Sharp 890v3 Giveaway
(1) For one entry, leave a comment telling me if you run in lightweight shoes. I’d also love to know if you run lightweight for all your runs or just some.
(2) For one entry, Tweet the following:
I entered to win @newbalance Team Garmin-Sharp 890v3 argyle running shoes from @dysterious. http://dorishinyblog.com/?p=10301
Then come back here and leave a comment letting me know you did so.
(3) If you have a contact at Twitter that can help me get my (extremely inactive/no tweets/no followers) name as my handle, you automatically win. Kidding. But let me know.
*I must receive all entries by Tuesday, August 6 at 12am and the odds of winning are determined by the number of entries received. Prize value is $109.99. No purchase necessary to enter.
They’re great shoes. Good luck!
**I received my New Balance 890v3 performance running shoes at no cost for review. All opinions are entirely my own.
